Unspoken Tolerance
by Valentine Valese
Summary: It's AquariusNight: RepostedRevised: Ginny Weasley and Draco Malfoy are both equally fed up with certain people's attitudes, especially their families. Constant bickering and endless fun. Let the games begin!
1. A new year and new revelations

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.**

Author's Note: This is AquariusNight just to clear things up ) I didn't like my nameeee. Hahaha. Anyway, I revised and redid some of the chapters, so hopefully you enjoy them. Have fun reading.

_**-Chapter 1-**_

"I guess it's over then," said Ginny, whispering softly to herself. She stared at the letter a moment more before placing the letter above a burning candle that was on top of her bedside table. The fire immediately engulfed the letter in small flames. She then placed the burning letter in an antique metal ashtray next to the candle.

Ginny waited a moment for the flames to die down, leaving nothing but ashes in its wake. Satisfied with the black mixture, Ginny lazily rose from her bed as she stretched her arms out luxuriously. She scampered downstairs, careful to avoid the creaky bottom step, not wishing to alarm anyone who may be up at this hour.

Ginny casually walked into the kitchen, plopping ungracefully into the nearest available chair. She grabbed a piece of toast from the wooden plate in the middle of the table and munched on it thoughtfully. Glancing towards the end of the table, she noticed Hermione completely engrossed in a book.

_'She's reading a lot more than usual, if that's even possible,'_ Ginny thought to herself idly.

She quickly finished the toast with five unimaginably massive bites.Ginny then stood up abruptly, shoving the chair back with her legs as it teetered for an instant before settling. Hermione, who was otherwise oblivious to Ginny's presence, was rudely knocked out of her reading stupor.

Hermione looked up sharply, eyes wide. Blinking twice, she let out a sigh of relief as she realized it was only Ginny, who was turning to leave the kitchen.

"Ginny," she said, staring at Ginny's retreating form. Ginny stopped and turned her head to look at Hermione.

"Yes Hermione?" Ginny asked indifferently.

Hermione stared at Ginny questionably, and Ginny, noticing her expectant stare, looked back into Hermione's eyes with an unwavering intensity. Not wanting to cause an unwanted scene for Ginny's sake, Hermione looked away. Ginny then contorted her features into one showing no emotion.

Raising an eyebrow Ginny asked, "Well? Did you need something Hermione?" and Hermione paused.Ginny turned towards her fully, looking somewhat bored and yet somewhat challenging.

Hermione finally gave up her attempt at a possible conversation as she shook her head. "No Ginny, nothing at all really. I was..I was just wondering if you were going to Diagon Alley with us tomorrow." She glanced up at Ginny, waiting for her response.

It was all Ginny could do _not _to roll her eyes. After contemplating her answer, she finally settled with a shrug and turned, walking out of the kitchen without another word. Hermione sighed in defeat.

"Ginny," she whispered sadly under her breath, before immersing herself in her book once again.

Ginny walked a ways bit from the house. She finally reached her destination, a lone tree. She approached it slowly as if discovering its presence for the first time.

When she reached it, she extended her arm out, lightly brushing her fingertips along a name, her name. The letters G-I-N-N-Y were inscribed in the trunk of the tree.

Ginny sat down, crossing her legs. She leaned back against the tree, feeling content for the time being. Thoughts began to swirl through her head, dancing in and out of vortexes filled with past memories. Ginny shook her head, trying to calm her bitter thoughts. It was ill attempt as Ginny thought back to the scene in the kitchen.

Hermione knew exactly why Ginny was acting the way she is. She wouldn't be Hermione Granger if she didn't. The so-called brains of the inseparable trio she makes with Harry and her brother Ron. It was deemed nearly impossible to break into their little circle and that's what aggravated Ginny the most.

It just wasn't fair to be shunned like this. Sure there is Dumbledore's Army and the like, but it just wasn't the same. Ginny, in all honesty, thought they would be over the whole exclusion bit. Apparently not.

Ginny was still kept in the dark about certain events that transpired between them at Hogwarts over the years. She was even barred from receiving a full explanation about the happenings in her first and the chamber of secrets.

They all believed she might break down and lapse into an episode over it. She _deserved_ to know what happened.

What she found the most suspicious was that they refused to tell her, much to her extreme annoyance, why Hermione was in the infirmary, and as a bloody _cat_ no less!

Ginny decidedly gave up after a while, as most tend to do when faced with such insufferable and stubborn people. It happened sometime around the end of July and the beginning of August. She cast it off, with much difficulty, as a lost cause and something that she would not be bothered with anymore.

_Although_, she's not against them having a _change of heart, _which could very much happen.

_'I am once again kidding myself,'_ Ginny thought irritably. The once and always optimistic side of Ginny never did fail to interrupt her constant pessimism, forever discretely spiting her brother and his two friends.

Ginny slouched against the tree, tilting her head back. A small grin graced her lips as she came to a most intriguing conclusion.

"This is definitely going to be the most eventful year at Hogwarts yet", she whispered with unabashed glee.

Ginny slowly closed her eyes as she almost immediately drifted into a much needed and welcome sleep.

"Mm," Ginny mumbled at the feel of someone nudging her shoulder. She leaned away from the annoying nudging bugger, not wanting to be disturbed.

The 'bugger' sighed loudly and reached over. He shoved Ginny so forcefully that she ended up completely on the ground and not half-leaning against the tree anymore.Ginny groaned in frustration and lifted herself up hastily. She whipped her head around to glare at her offender.

'_Surprise, surprise,'_ Ginny thought, not amused. It was Ron. Ron rolled his eyes before leaning down and offering Ginny his hand.

"Well don't just sit there Ginny, Mum wants us all in the kitchen," Ron said, looking semi-bored. Ginny scowled at him and shoved his hand away.

She made a failed attempt at trying to stand up gracefully when her legs wobbled sluggishly. Ron grinned, "Clumsy are we?", and waggled his eyebrows at her in obvious amusement.

"I hate you," Ginny muttered under her breath. Ron had caught what she said and it shown on his face as his grin broadened.

Ginny ignored him and began to walk back to the house. Ron stared at her back for a moment and then proceeded to jog up to her side. Ginny and Ron walked in an uncomfortable silence that was really getting to Ginny.

She opted to break it. "So, what does Mum want exactly? Breakfast should be way over by now," Ginny asked curiously.

Ron stared down at the grass, "I don't know, I think she said something about discussing our behavior when Harry comes over tomorrow," he said, his voice laced with Ginny couldn't quite put her finger on. The corner of her lip went down in an awkward frown, "Oh."

She had completely forgotten about Harry's arrival tomorrow as she was so wrapped up in her own things that she didn't even think of how it would be like when Harry came.

He was obviously still upset over Sirius' death and whether he means it or not, his grieved attitude affected everyone around him. Especially Ron and Hermione who were his closest friends. They were in for a rough two weeks until school started.

Ginny shook her head, she should not be thinking so negatively. She mentally snickered at that.

'_Me? Anything but pessimistic as of late? Now that _is_ something. Maybe having Harry over will help me become a bit more optimistic about everything that has been happening lately. I sure hope so anyway,'_ Ginny thought hopefully. Oh well, time would tell.

Draco Malfoy lay awake in bed that morning, his black silk covers coming up to his neck. He stared blankly at the ceiling, not daring to blink. If not for the slow rise and fall of his chest, one would think he was dead.

Someone knocked once on the door a moment later. Irritation spread across Draco's calm features.

"Damn that woman who is my mother!" Draco growled out angrily. He rolled over on his stomach, sending the once neatly laid out sheets into total chaos.

Draco moaned into his pillow in protest when he heard yet another knock on his door. His mother oh-so-thoughtfully arranged it so that her servant would not only wake her up at 6:00, but him as well! If it were his servant, Moira, he'd have been able to do something about it.

But alas, it wasn't.

Draco was doomed.

Regardless of the frequent knocks to his mahogany door, once Draco woke up, it was nearly impossible for him to go back to sleep.

Draco sighed and continued to lie there in bed stubbornly. He decidedly thought of numerous ways to hex and/or poison Agatha, his mother's servant. In three minutes time, yet another knock came on his door. Draco quickly turned his head towards the door, fed up with Agatha's endless knocking.

"I'm up you insufferable woman! Go bother mother why don't you. You are _her_ bloody servant, not _mine_! It would save a lot of time and effort if you just ceased your actions permanently," Draco shouted in annoyance.

An impatient yet calm voice responded from behind the door.

"Although many of you friends would find your less than charming rant to be amusing, especially since Agatha is nothing more than a servant, I myself, Draco, find it rude and disrespectful as you have no right to speak to Agatha like that. She is my servant, not yours, and you should do well to remember that."

Draco eyes promptly widened to the size of galleons at the sound of his mothers voice and unexpected presence.

Draco shut his eyes tightly, silently praying for his mother not to enter his bedroom, as it most likely, in his experience, meant a long and tiresome lecture. A lecture he so very much did not need, especially this early in the morning.

Draco inwardly groaned as he heard the doorknob slowly turn. Narcissa opened the door and entered the room. She gracefully walked over to the foot of his bed and stared down at him. He was still lying on his stomach, his head turned to the side.

Draco, using his peripheral vision, watched silently as his mother raised a delicately arched eyebrow at him expectantly. His eye twitched, and decided to slowly oblige to Narcissa's silent demanding of his undivided attention.

He lazily turned his body to face her completely, all the while lifting himself up at what could only be described as feigned sloth speed.

Draco could feel his mother grow more impatient and irritated by the second. He greatly resisted the urge to send an amused smirk in her direction.

Regardless of his suicidal behavior at the moment, Draco enjoyed the land of the living. He also resisted purring like a cat.

Finally pulling himself up, he moved to lean his back against the headboard. He adorned a look of innocence as he waited for his mother to react. Draco visibly grinned when he caught sight of a nerve twitching in his mother's neck.

Draco yawned into his hand, acting as innocent as ever. He set his still groggy eyes on his mother.

"Why mother, to what do I owe this.. Pleasure?" He asked sweetly, quickly sending her a dazzling smile, which faltered into another grin as yet another nerve twitched in his dear mother's neck.

Narcissa reached out and grabbed one of the wooden bed posts, wrapping her fingers around it somewhat tightly. Draco frowned at seeing her knuckles turn white, taking this as a bad sign. Something was wrong. He knew far to well that his mother only acted to grab something to sturdy herself with, when something unexpected and bad has happened.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Did something happen mother?" Draco asked, trying not to let worry invade his voice. At this Narcissa abruptly removed her hand from the best post. She opted for clasping her hands in front of her, keeping her composure as calm as possible.

She shook her head, "Not at all Draco, why ever would you think something like that?" She asked calmly.

_'A little too calmly in fact,' _Draco thought curiously. Now he was certain something was wrong. He perked his ears up and sat up straight. He would have to be extra observant now. If it was just like the other times his mother acted shady, it would not take long to crack her.

Narcissa took a sound step back, startling Draco out of his reverie. Draco leaned forward, his eyes questioning his mother's odd behavior. Narcissa let out a long breath she was unaware she was holding.

"Well Draco, I expect you down in the dinning room for breakfast, Francis made your favorite," Narcissa said, her voice sounding strained.

_'She's hiding something from me for sure, something against her will I would think. What is it mother? What are you trying to tell me?_,' Draco thought strongly.

The question burned through his steely gray eyes. His mother's eyes softened ever so slightly and she shook her head in response. Draco clenched his teeth and look down at his hands, feeling defeated.

Without a word, Narcissa turned and walked away, her back stiletto shoes clicking defiantly on the black marble floor. Draco deliberately let his head fall back, clunking it against the headboard. He repeated the gesture several more times, highly aware of the red bump he would develop in doing so.

He sighed in defeat and sagged back down completely on the bed. He was sprawled out haphazardly in an uncomfortable position, but paid no mind to the developing ache in his shoulders and back.

'_Great,' _he thought sadly to himself, '_Now what do I do?_'

School was starting soon and he knew there would not be any time to investigate this matter further.

He grimaced.

'_Bloody hell, I sound like Saint Potter. He and his sodding sidekicks, Weasley and Granger, never fail to butt into matters that concern Hogwarts. Insufferable clods.' _He shuddered at the thought of being even a little bit as nosey as them in that regard.

_'Well this doesn't concern Hogwarts. This concerns my mother and ….,' _Draco paused. What did this really concern? Was it really his mother he was concerned about? Or was he just worried about what might happen to him if, or rather, when he found out what was going on.

He growled in frustration.

'_Argh, it doesn't matter. What matters is figuring out exactly what the hell is going on in the first place!' _Draco snapped mentally.

There came a resounding knock on his door frame, knocking him out of his reverie. Draco barely lifted his head an inch and took a peek in the direction of the knock. He raised his eyebrows expectantly, the side of his lip turned down in slight annoyance.

"Master Draco," said Agatha, her voice floating across the room, "Your mother wishes you to know that you will be accompanying her to Diagon Alley tomorrow. She also says that she expects you to not have made any plans, or to cancel any that you may have made. That is all from Mistress Malfoy."

Draco openly glared at Agatha, '_Now why couldn't mother tell Moira to relay her message to me instead? Blast,' _Draco thought in aggravation.

"Very well Agatha, tell my mother that I shall be ready to depart to Diagon Alley when she feels fit tomorrow," Draco clenched his teeth, "You are dismissed."

Agatha nodded, leaving his room. An uncharacteristic smirk settled itself on her lips, '_Pity, pity for little Draco Malfoy, having to go on a _delightful_ trip with his mother like a ten year old,'_ Agatha thought cheerfully. '_I think I'll do well to pity him all tomorrow, the poor lad.' _Agatha continued back to Narcissa's room to relay Draco's message to her, her mouth now tight-lipped, to keep from smiling.

Draco groaned loudly to his low cathedral ceiling in protest. "Ugh, of all things to do, she wishes to go to Diagon Alley," Draco thought bitterly.

"I have been there at least fourteen times this summer, but I guess this shall be my lucky fifteen. Although one dares not to hope." He sighed, "And yet another lovely trip to Diagon Alley. Plus a worrisome and questionably sane mother," said Draco, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

**Author's Note**: Well that's the first chapter (also my first fic! Ack!), I hope you enjoy it. Draco will be in the next chapter so please don't bite my head off X, eeeeee. Hopefully I'll have time to reread the HP books so that the characters will be as in character as possible. If there are any mistakes and so forth, feel free to let me know (constructive criticism -shakes fist-). Hehe, _ANYHOO,_ HAPPY READING.


	2. The unexpected encounter

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.**

**-_Chapter 2-_**

"Merlin you could cut the tension in that room with a knife. Possibly even a giant sword," Ginny muttered softly to herself.

Her shoulders were slumped and her head was bowed as she walked to her room, leaving Hermione and Ron to continue watch Harry unpack in what she believed was a strained silence.

Harry had just arrived this morning just after breakfast. Suffice to say that he looked absolutely exhausted. His once glowing green eyes now portrayed a distant, lost look. There were also barely noticeable worry lines inching their way into the corners of his eyes and forehead.

Arthur Weasley had gone to pick up Harry alone, considering our _history_ with Harry's relatives, the Dursley's, was not exactly a pleasant one, minus the twins fun with Harry's obese cousin Dudley.

Ginny was sure the Dursley's, including her mum and dad, would just love a repeat of _that_ performance.

Before Harry came to the house, everyone felt a bit fidgety while preparing for his arrival. No one knew exactly just how to act when he arrived. They had all agreed to make sure his stay here was as comfortable as possible. Even the reluctant, although she did not show it, Ginny.

'_I don't know what the bloody big deal is. It's not like we treat him anything other than like family. I swear mum wishes she could adopt him,' _Ginny grumbled, '_I understand his pain, but he is _not_ a bloody porcelain doll and should not be treated as such. Harry can take care of himself, but of course he needs _us_ to help him get through it. Although I am skeptical about this whole situation, I will give it a shot, for Ron's sake.'_

Ginny nodded in reassurance to herself, in hopes it would all work out in the end. Upon Harry's arrival, everyone, including Ginny, donned happy expressions plus wide smiles, welcoming him into the Weasley home.

Harry looked a little bit flustered by the gathering of red-heads, but it seemed to relieve him for the time being. His sparkling luster had returned, making him seem almost normal again, on the outside anyway.

By the time he was able to retreat up to Ron's room, with Ron, Ginny and Hermione in tow, he had become awfully quiet.

Hermione and Ron were both in the room, helping Harry unpack and settle in. Ginny opted to stay by the door, halfway in the room, halfway in the hallway.

Ron and Hermione were making small talk with him, using the basics such as 'How are you? ', 'You grew taller', 'ready for our sixth year at Hogwarts? '. Ginny watched him carefully as he responded he spoke with them.

It was relieving to see that he was comfortable and relaxed.

Ginny narrowed her eyes into small slits, '_There's something different about him, something cautious and reserved, and it seems to be making Ron and Hermione a bit tense,'_ thought Ginny.

Ginny had to admit she was a bit jealous at the attention Harry was receiving. Her mother had completely ignored her this morning when Ginny said she had degnomed the whole garden by herself. She felt very proud for accomplishing something that usually took more than two people to do.

Ginny flushed a deep red, silently fuming. She had stomped up the stairs loudly and into her room, slamming the door. Even that did not seem to make her mum aware of what was going on with Ginny or that she even existed at the moment.

'_Always about Harry bloody Potter and his worries. Hell it is always about Ron or even Hermione! So bloody unfair I tell you! The only way to get any attention is if I was to say something about what happened in my first year. Then comes out the "Oh Ginny!", or "Do you want to talk about it?" What nonsense. What complete and utter nonsense.'_

Just then Arthur tapped on the door. "Hello Ginny? I just thought you should know that we plan to take a visit to Diagon Alley today. Harry-,"

'_Harry again? How shocking..,' "-_seems to be up to it, as well as the rest of us do, so please do hurry up, we are all ready to go and are just waiting for you," said Arthur, his voice calm and collected.

Before Ginny could say anything, footsteps could be heard fading in the distance, meaning he had already left to go downstairs with the others. Ginny let out an exasperated sigh.

'_Diagon Alley, eh? Maybe I can actually find something worth buying with the little bit of money I have saved up from my last few Christmas' and birthday's. ' _She moved over to her dresser, pulling out the bottom draw all the way until it threatened to fall out.

Ginny reached all the way in the back of the draw with her arm and searched. Her fingers brushed metal and she enclosed them on it.

She pulled out a small scratched up, dented light green metal tin. Using her wand, she tapped the top of the tin, whispering a small incantation or what appeared to be a password over it.

With a resounded 'pop' it opened to reveal a small worn leather pouch. Ginny grinned to herself and took the pouch out, the coins within jangling against each other with glee.

"Ginny! Let's get a move on!" yelled Molly Weasley from the bottom of the steps. Quickly, Ginny placed the tin back and closed the draw.

She got up and placed the small pouch in the newly sewn in pocket in her robes, patting it lightly with a small smile. Her smile quickly disappeared at the looks on everyone's face, excluded Harry, who looked passive.

_'Oh Great, now they are going to scold me for keeping everyone waiting. Mind you, they only just waited till the last minute to tell me we were going to Diagon Alley. Oh look, Mum's giving me that disapproving look, wait for it..," _Ginny thought, anticipating a quick chide from her mother. She pressed her lips into a thin line and crossed her arms.

To Ginny's surprise, Molly only shook her head, whispering a small 'tut, tut' under her breath and walked over to the fireplace. Her mouth must have opened in shock because Harry was giving her an odd look. Ginny resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at him, but settled for a shrug instead.

The side of Harry's lip twitched and he shook his head, his unruly black hair becoming tousled. He looked away from her and moved over to the fireplace. Ginny waited till everyone was finished going through before glancing around the house.

_'This is my life. When will I learn to just live it? To live it my way?' _Ginny thought dejectedly before grabbing a handful of floo powder and stepping into the fireplace.

"_Diagon Alley,"_ she yelled loudly and clearly, disappearing within the emerald green flames.

–––––––––––––––––––––––-

"_The Stormchaser,"_ Draco breathed out as he approached the Quidditch Store in Diagon Alley.

Without a single thought more, he pushed his way through the crowd of young boys who were gazing in awe at the new Stormchaser broom from behind the glass. Draco raked his eyes over the beautiful, hand carved broom with open adoration.

"The new Stormchaser! I heard it's supposed to be even better than the Firebolt by a long shot! Isn't that something? Too bad it isn't even up for sale yet. It'll be a long while before _that_ happens," a boy at around the age of 10 whispered to his friend, whose eyes were wide.

"Really? That's amazing! I heard it was carved from solid oak and finished off with a burnt dark blue color that looks almost black! I want one so badly! Just look at it," the boy gushed.

Draco silently agreed it really was a brilliant broom. It was first time he had ever laid eyes on it personally, and he had even secretly ordered one through Storm Brooms Inc.

Being ridiculously rich _did_ have it's advantages.

The second he heard that there was a broom that was going to be produced and would outdo the Firebolt, he just had to get it, whatever the cost or however it may have looked.

_'It's simply brilliant! Even the colors! Why, it's almost completely black, including the broom needles. The dark blue, almost black color wasn't a bad touch either; it would go nicely with my wardrobe and Quidditch uniform. Thank Merlin it wasn't some awful color like _red, _how unlucky that would be._" Draco shuddered at the thought of flying around with a _red_ colored broom.

'_Like some bloody Gryffindor,' _he thought in disgust.

"Wow, which broom is _that_?" A little brown haired girl to Draco's left was bouncing and pointing at a broom that was on the bottom of the Stormchaser.

Draco quirked an eyebrow and looked down at what appeared to be a dark purple broom. He narrowed his eyes at it and could have sworn the broom had a sort of _slender_ appearance to it.

_'Odd,' _Draco thought. He leaned down and forward to get a glimpse at the handle and possibly the name. An engraving caught his eye as he examined the handle closely.

The name, Silent Wisp, was plainly written in silver script. Draco's face contorted into one of amusement.

'_So this is the broom that was created for the sole purpose of fitting a female fliers needs," _Draco thought, '_how pathetic, it is obvious that witches developed this silly contraption. They clearly could not handle a normal racing broom just like everyone else in the wizarding world very well could.' _

Although Draco found it dumb to create a broom for just witches, he had to hand it to them for making a broom worthy of rivaling a Firebolt.

He could just see the Holyhead Harpies rushing to get their hands on some. Not just an all witches team, but all witches broom team as well. Draco shook his head and looked back up to the Stormchaser again, giving it another once over before he went to go get a butterbeer.

His mother had departed for home earlier in the day. She had said she was tired and that he should feel free to come home whenever he pleased as long as it was before dinner. He had nodded and told her that he was just going to go to the Quidditch Shop and then go get a butterbeer. Then he would return home and have dinner with her. She had smiled at him, before entering their carriage and headed to the Manor.

Unbeknownst to him, a smile crept onto his lips as he thought about the many wins to come once he got his Stormchaser. With a nod, he walked away, but not without glancing back over his shoulder.

'_I shall be seeing you again my friend, in either October or November. The sooner, the better. Can't wait to see the look on everyone's face, including Potter's, when they find out I have gotten a Stormchaser 8 months before it is even open for sale,' _Draco thought with an immense amount of glee and excitement.

He was so into his thoughts of superiority in terms of brooms and flight that he did not notice that he was going to bump into someone.

Someone who was as equally lost in their thoughts as he was. They both unknowingly walked right into each other, which, of course, tossed them back into reality.

Draco reflexively grabbed onto the closest thing or in this case person, to keep from falling.

This just so happened to be the same person he bumped into. Upon seeing a mass of red hair, Draco instantly let go, only to realize that the person had grabbed onto him as well.

They both tumbled into a heap on the cold stone ground, groaning all the while. Draco was the first to untangle from the awkward position he involuntarily fell into and stood up.

He at once brushed his robes free from filth. After he was done and seeing how he was such a gentleman, he leaned down slightly and extended his hand, offering to help the young girl up. The young girl pushed herself up using the palms of her hands and turned to see whom she had collided and fallen with.

Without hesitation, Draco's eyes as well as hers, widened in recognition.

"You!" Draco said accusingly, pulling his hand back and straightening himself. No way would he help _her_ up, especially since _she_ bumped into _him._

_ 'At least I think she did. Bah, that doesn't matter! She should still pay for ruining my robes and embarrassing me," _thought Draco furiously.

The person Draco Malfoy had crashed into was none other than Ginny Weasley.

Author's Notes: Fwoosh -wipes forehead-, this chapter wore my poor brain out. I was going to make it two separate chapters, but then I thought..ah what the hell. I think it's better as one, don't you? D Anyway, hope it came out alright. Working on the 3rd chapter now as we speak! Fun, fun, fun. Oodles of fun indeed. HhehEHheE.


	3. Lost money and stupid gits

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.**

_**-Chapter 3-**_

_'Oh fuck,' thought Ginny, 'as if my day couldn't get anymore worse'_.

Ginny was still on the ground, her head turned and staring at Malfoy in shock mixed with horror. Draco on the other hand, was glaring fiercely down at Ginny.

He made no indication that he was going to shrug it off and leave or help her up either. Ginny sighed and picked herself up cautiously, as not to slip and fall again. Now that would be embarrassing, especially since Draco was still there, not two feet from her.

Once she was up, Ginny patted her pockets to make sure she had everything, all the while ignoring Draco's presence and relentless glare. Her eyes widened when she felt her now flat pocket. It was official; her day was a complete disaster.

She had lost her money pouch!

Frantically, Ginny whipped her head around in all directions.

'_Oh no! It couldn't have gone far! It must be somewhere around here. It must have flown out of my pocket when I bumped into that idiot Malfoy,' _Ginny thought.

Draco raised his eyebrows, glare no longer intact. '_What is she doing? She's obviously looking for something she'd lost. How irresponsible can you get? Oh I forgot, she's Weasley,'_ thought Draco, rolling his eyes.

He took a quick glance around himself. His eyes fell on a small brown leather pouch that was behind his right boot.

Draco took a quick glance in Ginny's direction, noticing with amusement that she still hadn't had the brains to check behind him. She also wasn't facing him which gave Draco a chance to bend down and swiftly pick it up. Draco stared at it for a moment with slight disgust.

'_How old is this thing? Not to mention tacky. Ah well, what would one expect from a Weasley,'_ thought Draco, his nose momentarily scrunching up in distaste.

He held the pouch between his index finger and thumb as if it was contaminated. Almost instantly, an idea occurred to him and he held the pouch out in front of him.

With a smug look in place, he shook it and Ginny immediately spun around at the sound of the money clinking together in the little pouch.

Draco watched with delight as Ginny flushed an ugly shade of red, all the way to the tips of her ears.

"Give that back Malfoy," demanded Ginny. "Oh? This old thing?" Draco said, sounding innocent. Ginny fumed, she wasn't in a good mood to begin with and Draco wasn't helping things either.

"Yes, _that old thing_," Ginny spat, "It's mine and I want it back now. You stole it from me, I know it."

Draco did something completely unexpected and batted his eyelashes at Ginny. Her jaw opened slightly in shock. She quickly regained her composure and growled at Draco, obviously losing her patience, although one wonders if she had any to begin with.

"I am not in the mood for your asinine games Malfoy. Just give me back my pouch and go _away!"_ Ginny shouted the last word forcefully.

Alas, to no avail, he didn't give it back. He just smirked at her and that infuriated her.

"Why Weasley, I'm hurt. Why would you ever think me to be a thief? All I did was help you _find_ your measly little pouch and you go off on me like a raving banshee," Draco said calmly.

He was curious to know why she hadn't yet pulled her wand out and threatened to hex him yet. Although they weren't allowed to use magic during the summer, Draco believed she was stupid enough to do so anyway. After a moment of silence, It was apparent that she wasn't going to. Not that he was complaining.

He could still _feel_ that damned bat-bogey hex she had given him in his fifth year and it wasn't pretty. Draco watched as Ginny tried desperately to control her temper, her fists clenching and unclenching themselves.

Draco grinned, and oh-so-casually placed the pouch into his robe pocket. This was a bad move and he knew it.

Draco knew it the instant her face turned, although he didn't think it was possible, yet another shade redder and her nostrils flared. He instantly regretted it although didn't show it. Ginny went kapooey.

She erupted, exploded, and everything else that meant 'blew up' could be used to accurately describe Ginny Weasley's current standing. She stomped right up to him and, catching him by surprise, shoved him back. Draco was, for lack of a better word, shocked and stumbled back a foot or two.

Ginny yelled at him fiercely, "_Who do you think you are Draco Malfoy! Nobody, that's what! You just couldn't leave well enough alone could you, _could_ you! As if having to deal with all this shit in my life wasn't enough, you just had to _grace_ me with your insufferable presence!" _

Draco's mouth had opened somewhere in the middle of her rant and he just stared at her. Ginny paused and took a deep breath. Draco wouldn't have been surprised if her eyes turned red as well as her face. He noticed with a shocked silence that she wasn't finished.

Not at all.

"_All I did was ask you for my pouch back. And did you give it back? _NO!_ Why must everyone aggravate me so?"_ Ginny clearly forgot who she was yelling at as she started gushing about her life to Draco as if he was the cause of all her problems.

"_First my mother outright ignores me when I made Prefect, then Ron and Hermione treat me like some porcelain doll," _Ginny was starting to shake from her pent up anger, "_Then EVERYONE ignores me and acts like I don't exist all because of the bloody boy who lived!" _

As if he was hit with some sort of mega stretch charm, Draco's mouth dropped even further.

"_I mean honestly! It's like he's more their son than I am their daughter. It's just not bloody fair! Everyone should just sod off and leave me alone! Including you, you stupid, arrogant, self-centered shmuck!"_ She sucked in a deep breath.

Ginny's face was so flushed; you could no longer see the slight dusting of freckles across her nose and cheekbones. Draco had closed his mouth and stared at Ginny, completely speechless except for the thoughts zooming about in his head.

'_Whoa! What an outburst. And I thought Weasley_ _was a hothead. Hey wait a minute, since when did the littlest Weasley hate Potter? Surely she still fancies scar-head? Well, isn't this a shocker, a Gryffindor AND a Weasley who doesn't like Potter. Shocking," _thought Draco hastily.

Ginny stared back at Draco, quickly regaining her senses and composure. Her eyes widened to the size of saucers when she realized with alarm as to what she just did. She did the first thing that came to mind, hoping that Draco wouldn't snap out it before she got a chance to bolt.

Ginny ran up to Draco, stuck her hand in his robe pocket, grabbed her pouch and ran off in the other direction, becoming lost among the crowd of witches and wizards. Draco blinked and his head jolted up quickly to look in the direction in which Ginny fled.

'_Merlin she's a fast runner, I bet she realized what she said to me and all she could think to do was run away. How pitiful and uninventive. She's probably horrified at the thought of anyone knowing she actually holds some dislike for the bespectacled git," _thought Draco, as a smirk formed on his lips.

Draco grinned mischievously.

'_Who knows,_ _maybe I can use this to my advantage.'_ Unaware of the blatant grin on his face, Draco walked off towards the Leaky Cauldron.

Although the Leaky Cauldron had great butterbeer, Draco would never voluntarily admit that he liked going there for some peace in a secluded corner table, not to mention the butterbeer and certain appetizers that he rather enjoyed.

Again, he would rather listen to Sir Cadogan rant and rave about chivalry and jousting. Now _that_ was saying something. As Draco walked, he thought about what had happened. He was highly curious as to why Ginny, although he wasn't one-hundred percent sure that was her name, was so mad, and at Wonder Boy in particular.

'_Although, come to think of it, she didn't necessarily say she hated Potter. I highly _doubt _she does, but one never can tell with bloody Potter. Of course, for me, if I had to be in the same _vicinity_ with Potter for an extended period of time, I'd sure as hell wouldn't be happy myself. I wonder what he did,' _Draco thought, scrunching his eyebrows in thought, '_Probably proclaimed his love for the mudblood.'_

At this, Draco let out a small laugh. He muttered coldly under his breath, "Yet another thing to investigate. Although I think this one won't be as stressful and nerve-racking."

Draco didn't know how very wrong he was.

He finally made it to the Leaky Cauldron, swiftly entering and walked over to a secluded table over in the corner.

Tom saw him and walked over, "Hello Mr. Malfoy, what can I get you?" He asked in a casual tone. Draco nodded to him, "Just a butterbeer." Tom nodded back to him in affirmative, "One butterbeer coming right up," he said before walking away.

Later Tom came and brought him his butterbeer and Draco paid for it, giving Tom extra for tip. Draco examined the butterbeer mug, a fruitless effort seeing as how the Leaky Cauldron kept their mugs and other various ware spotless.

Draco took to enjoying his butterbeer, pausing every once in a while to just stare into oblivion. He welcomed the voices of people in the Leaky Cauldron as they, oddly, calmed him.

He felt a weird reassurance whenever surrounded by others in public places, this excluding school. Although in reality, he was still very much alone.

Draco took a sip from his butterbeer and leaned his head back, closing his eyes and savoring the moment as well as his butterbeer. His eyes shot open at the sound of a big group bustling into the Leaky Cauldron. Their voices seemed to carry over the customers and others as they came in.

'_Surprise, surprise,'_ Draco thought.

It was the Weasley's….Plus a very bushy headed Granger and an always stupid looking Potter.

He also noted with interest that the youngest Weasley, Ginny, had walked in last, looking very much annoyed, although she tried to hide it.

Draco glanced at the cheery faces of the Weasley Clan and couldn't help but notice that Ginny looked very much out of place with her eyes downcast.

'_I guess that's what happens when you have so many lumbering brothers and no sisters,'_ thought Draco, an amused expression on his face.

Ginny froze when she felt the hairs on the back of her next stand up.

'_Someone is staring at me, I can feel it,'_ Ginny thought, her eyes glancing around suspiciously. She came up with nothing and shrugged.

Hermione tugged on Ginny's sleeve and indicated to the table off to the right, almost completely full from her family's presence. She sauntered over with Hermione and unconsciously took the seat furthest away from Harry.

Hermione sent her an odd look and took the seat in between Harry and Mrs. Weasley. Ginny still felt uneasy, she was certain that someone was staring at her, but who?

There were some obvious spots which were lacking light in the Leaky Cauldron which made it so it would be almost impossible to spot anyone who sits in them.

She narrowed her eyes and peered closely at each and every one of them. Her eyes had passed over another dark spot when she caught a flicker of light coming from the last one.

Ginny looked closely at it and almost gasped but caught herself. Intense, scrutinizing steely gray eyes stared back into hers.

Draco kept his surprise hidden when Ginny had found him out. He was curious to see how long she would hold his gaze before turning away. He wondered if she would blush as she turned away, as most girls tended to do whenever caught in a staring contest with him.

Apparently she didn't when she gave him a look of disgust and turned her head to talk to one of her numerous red-headed brothers.

He watched with mild interest as they all stood as one little or rather large unit and headed out of the Leaky Cauldron.

Ginny was again last, and took that as an opportunity of sorts to glance back over her shoulder at Draco. Draco smirked at her and it only proved to widen when she frowned and looked away.

When she was gone, he looked down towards his watch and noticed that it was almost dinner time. He drank the rest of his butterbeer and walked out, a small smile creeping up on his lips.

'_This should be fun.'_

**Author's Note:** And out comes the 3rd chapter. Fun stuff! _Finally_ some D/G action! Hehehe. Hopefully it's not _too_ out of character…or boring. Boring is bad! Anyway, please review if you can! Thanks a bunch )


	4. Dazed, confused, and annoyed

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.**

**-_Chapter 4-_**

Ginny looked bored out of her mind just sitting there in the Great Hall, waiting for the new first years to flood in and be sorted. She rested her chin on her palm and looked around the table with tired eyes.

She rolled her eyes when she looked Harry and Ron from across the table. The swooping gestures they were making with their hands made it obvious that they were talking about Quidditch.

Hermione was sitting right beside her and was attempting conversation with Neville Longbottom.

He looked calm and relaxed, as oppose to his usual hesitant and jumpy self. His fifth year really did have a lasting effect on his mentality. He was much more mature and his posture gave off a more confident vibe.

He was congratulating her on getting Head Girl.

'_As if she wasn't going to get it,'_ Ginny thought dully.

Ginny grinned, '_Maybe he'll actually be able to have potions with Snape without screwing anything up.'_

Ginny's ears perked up at the sound of the Great Hall's doors opening up to reveal Professor McGonagall and a large group of first years. They moved in one big wave to the front of the Hall and up to where the sorting hat was perched.

Ginny began to zone out as the students were sorted one by one. She didn't feel like clapping whenever someone was sorted into Gryffindor. She instead remembered back to when she herself was sorted. Ginny had been disappointed when she didn't see Ron or Harry (she had a ridiculous crush on him back then) when she was being sorted.

Not that it mattered since _all_ Weasley's for generations were sorted into Gryffindor.

This is why it unnerved her to no end when the sorting hat had paused when sorting her. He seemed a bit hesitant to sort her into Gryffindor and Ginny almost panicked.

She remembered exactly what it said.

_Ah_, _yet another Weasley. Surely Gryffindor is the house for you? And yet.., yes…, there is something else.., something extra that you possess... You, Ginny Weasley, possess something the other Weasley's do and do not possess. Yes..you do..and how odd it is. It is buried deep within you. There is no need to panic, for the house for you is…. '_GRYFFINDOR!'

The sorting hat's words still rung clearly through her head, never ceasing to make her question her place in Gryffindor or in life. Ginny was certain, at least, that one day she would indeed find out what exactly she _possessed_.

She just hoped it wasn't something that could have any negative effects on her life or anyone else's for that matter.

Ginny turned to catch grey eyes gazing evenly at her. She greatly intended to hold his gaze with a look of indifference. Draco kept his features calm, allowing no emotions to creep up on him. She opted to do the same.

Ginny noted with mild interest that his normally slicked back silvery blonde hair was left mostly alone. It was surprising long as usually when it was slicked back, it was if it was literally plastered to his head making it seem like he had very short hair. If it Draco she was staring at, she probably would have thought it to be endearing.

_'What the hell? Is she checking me out? She keeps looking at me like I'm some crossbreed between a blast-ended skrewt and a niffler,'_ thought Draco and narrowed his eyes at her.

Ginny realized with slight embarrassment that she obviously had been doing more than staring. She attempted to salvage some dignity and glared at him, only to receive a smirk in return.

Ginny silently fumed, or at least she thought she did. Draco's smirk turning into an amused grin made her believe otherwise. Giving up, she sighed in exasperation and shook her head.

Should Ginny have turned her head she would have seen Hermione peering at her curiously and wondering who she was staring at.

Hermione scanned the Slytherin table, '_Why would Ginny be staring at someone who's in Slytherin?'_ She wondered.

She instantly regretted it when she met the sneering look of Draco Malfoy. He was openly glowering at her with an increasing intensity and his lips twisting to mouth the word 'Mudblood'.

Hermione instantly frowned and managed to muster up enough nerve to glare at him before tilting her chin up.

Before she looked away, her eyes caught sight of the gleaming gold Head Boy badge pinned on Draco's robes. It was if she had almost forgotten that he had made Head Boy and was denying it when her frown deepened.

Draco couldn't suppress a grin at this.

'_Funny little mudblood. Always in denial. She is probably still denying the fact that she is filthy and repulsive as well,'_ he thought with great delight.

His grin threatened to extend when he saw the looks of horror on Harry and Ron's faces when Hermione told them the _good_ news.

They both simultaneously glanced at Draco and the badge on his chest. Ron reddened to the shade of ripe tomato which immediately made Hermione reach over and pat his arm comfortingly.

"It's not that big of a deal, _honestly_," said Hermione. "Just think of it this way Ron," interjected Harry, "If he tries anything, you can hex him to Romania and back. Or rather, not back at all. Leave him to get eaten by Norwegian Ridgeback."

At this, all three of them burst out laughing, an image of Draco Malfoy bouncing from Hogwarts to Romania, only to get eaten by a dragon.

Ginny jumped in her seat. She had been staring into the Abyss and wasn't paying attention to anything or anyone, until now. She looked at the three of them as if they were crazy.

"What's so funny?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. They instantly stopped and exchanged glances and Ginny knew she wasn't going to get the answer she wanted.

Ron shrugged, "Oh nothing Ginny. Nothing important." Ginny shook her head and looked down at the table, appearing to be immensely interested in the patterns of the wood.

_'It figures they wouldn't tell me anything, I shouldn't have even bothered in the first place,'_ Ginny thought, sounding peeved.

She didn't know how long she was staring at the table, but it obviously must have been a long time for Hermione tapped her on the shoulder telling her that, "I'm going to go lead the first years up to the dorm, I'll see you later." With that being said, she left. Harry, Ron and the first years got up and followed her closely behind.

Ginny saw that everyone was making a move to leave so she decided to join them. She got up and moved to walked out.

"Hurry it up or get out of the way Weasley! You're going too slowly. I have first years to show their dorms so move it." Draco half-yelled at her.

Ginny stared daggers at Draco. He was such a jerk.

"You should consider being a tad bit more courteous towards other Malfoy, you wouldn't want to set such a bad example and thus lose your Head Boy Badge," Ginny said with a mischievous smile.

Draco ignored her and nudged her aside with his shoulder before continuing on, barking at the first years to keep up.

"Git," Ginny mumbled and walked out of the Great Hall. Someone called to her in the distance and she stopped. Dean Thomas was making his way over to her, looking a bit nervous.

"Hi Ginny," said Dean, sticking his hands in his robe pockets. Ginny gave him a small smile, "Hey Dean, how was your summer?" The corner of Dean's lip twitched and he suddenly looked out of place.

"Oh nothing much really. Same ol', same ol'," said Dean, and chuckled lightly to himself.

'_Whatever that means,'_ thought Ginny. Dean was looking everywhere and at everyone. Except her. Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"Is something wrong Dean?" She asked curiously. He looked a bit startled and heh'd. He stuttered, "O-Oh, n-nothing."

Ginny narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but said nothing. Dean looked down at his feet for a moment before looking back up.

He tried to keep his voice even, "So look Ginny, about what I said in..in the letter," he paused, "I mean, I know it was vague and I didn't exactly provide much of an explanation and I'm sorry, but, do you think, that we could just forget about it and pretend it never happened? We are still friends right?"

Dean looked hopeful, but still edgy. She didn't have time for this. She nodded her head vigorously and put on a fake smile.

"Of _course_ Dean, of course we're still friends. Don't worry about it," Ginny said sweetly, not completely taking the sarcasm out of her voice. Apparently he missed it though when he brightened up considerably.

"Oh really? That's great Ginny," he glanced over his shoulder, "listen I've got to run. Maybe we can talk later? If you want to that is."

Ginny looked quickly over Dean's shoulder and saw with annoyance that Seamus Finnigan was waiting for him.

"Yeah, yeah sure Dean. I have to go too. See you," Ginny let out quickly and waved.

Before Dean had a chance to say goodbye, Ginny had already turned and was walking away. He shrugged his shoulders and left with Seamus.

Ginny walked around the school grounds for a while before she went to the lake. There was a group of trees, three to be exact that lay at one of the edges of the lake. They were spread out into a sort of crescent shape and they were bent over, making the trees look as if they had created some sort of small sanctuary.

Ginny walked over to the tree on the far left and gazed at small initials that were engraved into the trunk of the tree. 'G.W.' were the initials inscribed in the trunk.

_Her initials._

She took out her wand and flicked it at the trunk. The initials glowed red and burned. After an instant, the burning ceased, making the once worn initials clear once again.

Ginny then took her usual place next to the tree, sliding down against it till she was on the ground, still fully leaning against it. Her brows furrowed, making it obvious that she was in deep thought. She closed her eyes halfway and looked fixedly on the lake.

The moon was full and bright tonight, and it reflected beautifully off the lake. The water shimmered as if it were alive.

"I wish I could stay out here forever," Ginny breathed. "Stupid Harry. Stupid Ron. Stupid Hermione. Stupid Dean. Stupid everyone…," she said, barely in a whisper.

"Just when I finally thought I was going to be accepted into their little circle, I get shoved out even more. Physically I'm there in DA, but mentally..they just block me out and act like I wouldn't understand. Damn them! I'd understand! I've understood it all for so long that it just hurts. Why do they keep doing this to me? How can they be so dense?"

It was the same each time. Ginny would run it all through her head time and time again, wondering the same thing, but nothing ever changed. Her questions were still left unanswered. Her bottom lip trembled and she wrapped her robes tightly around her.

She stared hard at the lake as if expecting it to answer her questions. The lake rippled and the light from the moon swam through them. She took that as a sign. A determined look washed over her face.

"One day, I am going to show them, show them all that I am worth the effort. I can't fail, I just can't. I _need_ them to know who I am, but can I do it alone?" Ginny said strongly and ended softly. She left her body weight to the complete mercy of the tree and closed her eyes. She didn't have her eyes closed long when…

"What the bloody hell are you doing here Weasley?" Draco asked loudly, demanding an answer.

Ginny's eyes flew open and she lifted herself off the tree with a start. Her eyes were wide when she turned to the speaker, only to narrow in recognition.

Just when she had finally reached solace, this bumbling idiot had to ruin it all.

"What do you want Malfoy?" Ginny asked, her tone of voice screaming bored. "I could also be asking you the same question." Draco glared at her and didn't answer. Ginny didn't intend to answer him either and glared back at him as well.

Unbeknownst to Ginny and Draco, the lake rippled once again, sending beams of light to wash over them and only them.

**Author's Notes: **PHEW! It took me a while, but I finally wrote it! It took me an hour to figure out how to start this one off, but I guess it all worked out alright. The next chapter is going to be a fun one. Load's of bickering as you can probably tell. All the more reason to read it. Hehehehe. Thanks for reviewing everyone!

**Morena Evensong:** Yah I was actually going for that whole Molly Weasley temper flare. It's just so much fun to work with and it does make sense. I guess you're right about Draco's attitude depending on who he's around. I guess we'll just see how he develops throughout the fic and what kind of influence Ginny has on him -wink-.


	5. A harmless squabble by the Lake

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.**

**-_Chapter 5-_**

Two minutes had passed.

Draco and Ginny were _still_ staring at each other, each only having blinked once. Their eyes literally burned with the growing dryness. Ginny's eyes finally twitched and that was all it took for a grin to spread across Draco's face.

"Hah, You lose," said Draco triumphantly, "now get the _hell_ out."

Ginny snapped her head up to look Draco dead in the eye, her eyes glaring. She dashed forward and for what might have been the second time that week, Draco got shoved, and by the same girl no less!

Two pink spots made their way onto Draco's cheeks. He wasn't happy. He came to stand in front of her, his face mere inches from her.

"What the bloody hell is _wrong_ with you! Who do you think you are you unkempt savage!" Draco shouted in Ginny's face, making her hair swish back and forth from his breath.

Ginny pressed her lips into a thin line and an ugly shade of red made its way onto her face. She breathed deeply and then, once again, shoved Draco. She then moved away from him and walked over to where the lake stood.

"Just go _away_ Malfoy," she growled out in a whisper. Her hands were clenched tightly at her side and she was shaking. Draco knew, with a small smirk, that he'd hit a nerve. He silently walked up behind her.

"So," Draco whispered, his breath tickling her ear. Ginny instantly froze. "A bit sensitive are we?" Draco stated, more than asked.

Ginny whirled around, forcing Draco take a few steps back.

"Go to _hell_ Malfoy," Ginny spat, "you don't know anything! You don't even have a heart, you," she grinned, "bubbly bouncing _ferret._" Draco immediately darkened. His gray eyes become clouded and it looked as if there was a lightning storm within his eyes.

"_Bitch_," Draco hissed, taking a small threatening step forward. Ginny, who was at the edge of the lake, wobbled and tried to veer out of the way. Out of sheer reflex, Ginny latched onto Draco robes, pulling him back with her.

Draco panicked and instead of pushing her off, used the heels of his boots and pulled back. He tugged and twisted his body, as well as hers involuntarily. They both ended up falling onto ground, instead of into the lake. They laid there in a tangled heap, in what would be described as a stupefied shock.

Finally realizing what had just happened and the awkward position they were in, they quickly disentangled themselves and scrambled away from each other as if one had burned the other. Draco had dashed back up against the tree all the way to the right, leaning tiredly against it. Ginny had crawled to hers on the far right, breathing heavily.

_'Ok, now, what the HELL just happened?'_ Ginny thought furiously, glancing at Draco out the corner of her eye. He was breathing heavily as well and kept his gaze on the water.

'_Did Malfoy..just..save me from falling in? No, he didn't. He doesn't care for anyone other than himself, probably trying to save his robes from getting ripped. Bastard.'_ She silently brooded.

'_What the fuck was that all about? Shit, did I just save the Weasley from falling in lake?' _Draco shook his head lightly, '_No, no, no. I didn't. I was just worried I'd fall in myself and that brain-dead girl just..happened..to-hey, she grabbed onto me! She wanted me to go down with her. Grrr. Vengeful little redhead isn't she,' _thought Draco, feeling positively infuriated.

Draco pushed himself off the tree and stalked over to where Ginny was. Seeing him come over, she stood up, sticking her chin in the air defiantly.

"_Weasley,"_ he spat her name out like it was poison, "_you still didn't answer my question."_

Ginny looked Draco directly in the eye, not daring to blink. "And what question was this?" She said sweetly. She could have sworn Draco's nostrils flared when she said this, but shrugged it off.

Draco was pissed. She was _deliberately_ trying to provoke him.

'_She's either very brave or incredibly stupid. Of course, I'll take the latter,' _thought Draco.

"Hrm? Well? What is it?" Ginny asked, appearing to wait patiently for an answer. Draco growled at her and it made her jump.

"What. Are. You. Doing. _Here,_" Draco demanded slowly. Ginny stared hard at him before saying, "If anything Malfoy, _you_ should be the one explaining why you're here. I was here first and here's my proof!"

Ginny whirled around and pointed to the tree trunk where her initials were carved or rather, burnt into.

"I put my initials here in my first year, signifying that I have a _right_ to be here, as it is my place of Solace. Besides the fact that you don't own anything of Hogwarts',' Ginny stated confidently.

Draco's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

'_How the hell? There's just no way..'_ He turned his head away and then looked back to her, a determined look in his eyes.

"You think you're smart don't you Weasley? How do I know you didn't just put them there today?" Draco donned on a smug look on his face, which died once he saw the smile on Ginny's face.

Ginny took her finger and rubbed it along her initials. "As you can _clearly_ see Malfoy, these marks are old, a few years old. It's obvious I used my wand to burn them in a long time ago and as you can see with your_ perfect vision_, they are abnormally deep," Ginny said evenly and couldn't help grin at the look of disbelief on Draco's face.

"That's impossible," Draco murmured more to himself than her, but Ginny heard it nonetheless and raised her eyebrows.

"Bollocks!" Draco shouted and swiftly reached forward, grabbing Ginny's wrist. Ginny's eyes widened and he yanked her forward. She instinctively tried to pull her wrist out of Draco's death grip, but to no avail.

She gave up struggling with him as he was practically dragging her. She finally relented and decided to just walk with, rather than against him.

Draco stopped and almost dropped her hand when he didn't feel her pulling anymore. He glanced at her, but tugging on her wrist and guiding her wordlessly towards the tree on the far right.

They came to a stop, after an _agonizingly _long minute, which would have taken not even five seconds if Ginny hadn't struggled against him so strongly.

'_Stupid bint,'_ Draco thought, rolling his eyes. He noticed Ginny was staring at him stupidly.

'_Red hair, Vacant expressions…mixed with stupidity.'_ Draco motioned to the trunk of the tree in front of them with a slight nod of his head.

Ginny's jaw dropped and she took in a sharp breath.

On the trunk, were engraved the initials D.M. '_Oh no! This is impossible! What the _hell_?' _Ginny thought frantically. She turned to gape at Draco, whose lips decidedly curled up into a standard 'I-told-you-so' grin.

Ginny's hand itched with the biggest urge to slap that grin off his face.

'_I've never in my life met someone who could look so arrogant and smug. I swear he practices every morning in the mirror,'_ thought Ginny and grumbled silently to herself.

Draco brushed his fingernails on his robes casually, "So Weasley, what do you have to say for yourself?"

Ginny hmph'd, "When did you first put them in? Today I suspect," and leaned forward to examine the trunk, "or maybe not, these don't look fresh. So tell me Malfoy, when?" She waggled her eyebrows at him and copied his grin.

Draco openly seethed.

Draco glanced at the trunk and said quickly, "Why, my first year of course. You know, a year _before_ you," he said stiffly and that was all Ginny needed to know that he was lying.

"_Liar,"_ she hissed. "You responded way to quickly and you look like a tree yourself, so it's obvious that.. you.. are.._lying_," Ginny said, killing off the urge to spell it out for him.

When he didn't immediately respond, verbally, she knew she was right. His charming display of his middle finger didn't exactly hold anything back either.

Ginny narrowed her eyes at him, "You can't even admit it, can you?" Ginny threw up her hands in exasperation, "No, of course not, not a Malfoy. Bloody _hell_, if anything, the Malfoy's are going down in history for being the biggest pompous arses this side of _whatever!_"

Draco glared daggers at her, his apples of his cheeks flushed red, and not from the cold.

"You are infinitely lucky that I was raised _not_ to strike females," Draco shot; he acted as if she should be grateful that he didn't hit girls.

'_Jerk,'_ thought Ginny. He wasn't finished as his voice suddenly became dangerously low, "Even muggle-loving filth like _you_."

Now, Ginny may have not given in to her hand's itchy urge before, but she was in no way going to _not_ give in this time.

_SMACK. _

Draco stumbled back a few feet, clutching his cheek.

_'Serves you right you bastard,'_ thought Ginny.

Draco looked as if he wanted to forget what he had just said about not hitting girls and take a whack at her, _anything_. What bugged him the most was the fact that he couldn't threaten her or hex her. It was too early in the year to get into trouble, especially since he was Head Boy.

"I could get you in trouble for that Weasley," Draco hissed menacingly. Ginny shrugged, not caring in the least.

"Go right ahead Malfoy, it was damn well worth it. Especially the look on your face…priceless. Bet no girl has hit you since your 3rd year, when Hermione got her chance to lay a nice one on you."

Ginny giggled and Draco scowled.

_'I swear this bloody Head Boy business is making it real hard for me to abstain from hexing her into oblivion. I can't harm her, well for now anyway, or hex her. So what _can_ I do?" _Draco furrowed his brows in deep thought, thinking it over.

Ginny raised an eyebrow and peered at him. _'I wonder what he's thinking about. Probably trying to find a loop whole so he can hex me. Too bad there aren't any unless he erases my memory.' _

Ginny grinned and began whistling a tune from the Weird Sisters.

Draco's features brightened considerably, which went unnoticed to the whistling Weasley. He had figured out a way in which he could not, A) Physically or mentally harm her, '_Unless she's as weak as I thought she would be,'_ and B) Hex her.

Draco rubbed his hands together, grinning mischievously.

'_Oh she's going to get a kick out of this. Haha, Draco, you _are_ a genius!' _Draco acted fast. He grabbed Ginny's sides, making her yelp and squirm. He pulled her back, turned and shoved with all his might.

Ginny instantly damned herself for being so bloody light as she practically flew towards the lake.

Ginny hit the water with a resounding _SPLASH _and was instantly submerged within the dark blue depths of the lake. Ginny kicked up to the surface, flailing her arms about her. She swam to the edge and scrambled out, looking very much put out and livid.

'_I can't believe he just did that.'_

Draco was desperately trying to keep a straight face, for fear he might collapse into hysterically laughing lump on the ground if he didn't.

He clutched his stomach and stood absolutely still, occasionally taking deep breathes. '_Hold it, hold it, hold it!'_

Ginny stood there for a moment, slowly counting to ten in her head. She was completely red despite how cold she was and angry beyond comprehension.

She was soaked from head to toe, her uniform sticking to her in a _provocative_ way and her robes were weighing down on her shoulders greatly. Her hair was also sticking out in various directions and all it took was look glance at Draco to make him lose his reserve completely.

Draco burst out laughing, falling to his knees in a fit of uncontrollable snickers and chuckles. His eyes were filled with mirth and were twinkling brightly. Try as he might to smother it with hands, only managed to fuel it. His whole face was a light shade of pink and his cheeks were red.

And all Ginny could do was gawk at him. And all thoughts of screwing her no-detention-on-first-day-rule to hex Malfoy into oblivion, went poof.

She honestly didn't know _what_ to make of this outcome. She had never, ever, ever seen Draco, or a Malfoy for that matter, laugh so freely.

It was.._weird_.

She didn't know if this was a good thing or a bad thing, but she didn't want to know.

Or did she?

Ginny had finally decided, with great difficulty, especially with Mr. Giggles behind her, that it wasn't worth getting worked up all over again. She also didn't think he was going to stop anytime soon. Although the volume of it had lowered considerably.

She'd definitely have to remember this.

'_The day a Malfoy actually laughed. Maybe there's more to them then meets the eyes.'_

Ginny shot Draco a quick glance, '_then again, maybe not.'_ And with that, Ginny began to trudge back up towards the castle, the soft chuckling sounds of a certain Malfoy lingering within her mind and ears.

**Author's Note: **My GoD, I ran into several blocks in my BRAIN when it came to writing this fic. I wasn't sure if I should have had them both fall into the lake the first time or just keep them falling on the ground. A lot of other stuff too, but it's not that important. Again, thanks for the support and all the reviews, they're great and they're what keep me going! Thanks a bunch!

– I also left these review responses, just for the hell of it ) -

**Morena Evensong: **Yes there is actually going to be a story behind the initials on the tree..for _both_ of them. I think it'll be a real treat, then again, it's not up to me now is it? Hehe. I really was trying to be flexible in terms of how these characters viewed each other. As well as TRYING to keep 'em IC. Although I think they are slowly slipping to OOC. Who knows..anyway, thanks for reviewing!


End file.
